A Plain Enchancian Love Story
by DaeFaely
Summary: Sent away at a young age, Sofia goes to a harsh boarding school where she will experience many years of abuse. When she finally leaves, she goes on to teach a young orphaned girl who lives in a mysterious place. Sofia thinks she's finally found her place but will the mysteries of her new home upset her newfound happiness?
1. Chapter 1

**(A/N: I didn't really think I'd come back to writing Sofia the First fan fiction very much, not since writing A King's Justice or a Princess's Mercy. What can I say? This story is based off of one of my favorite love stories, Jane Eyre. And I like Sofia the First. So I couldn't resist. Some names of places won't change from whatever they are in Jane Eyre. But for the most part, names of people and places will be from the show. And this is not coming to be a copy and paste of Jane Eyre.**

 **That said, I own nothing.)**

"Come here, little rat."

Sofia tried to make herself smaller in hopes of staying hidden from her cousins. Morgana and Jade, she didn't mind as much, but Slickwell was a monster. Sofia silently pleaded for him to not find her. No such luck. He knew she liked to hide behind the curtain in the window seat and read there.

"Aha!"

Sofia paled when Slickwell pulled the curtain back. Angrily, he ripped the book she was holding out of her hands.

"Little Wench!" Slickwell demeaned his cousin. "What are you doing reading my book again?"

"It's not your book Cousin Slickwell, it's my Uncle's, your father's book," Sofia said.

"My father is dead, so everything that was his is mine, you filthy orphan," Slickwell said. "And you will call me Master Slickwell!"

Sofia shook her head. Angered, Slickwell smashed the book into Sofia's head, scraping it and causing her to bleed. Slickwell smirked as his younger cousin reached up to feel the scrape and look at the blood that was now on her fingers. The smirk quickly disappeared when Sofia lurched at him, hitting and kicking and anything else she could do.

"Mama!" Slickwell cried out. "She's going to kill me!"

Very quickly Aunt Prisma came running, along with a couple servants. Sofia felt herself being pried away from her cousin.

"You wicked child!" Aunt Prisma screeched. "Suzette, take the girl to the red room!"

"No, not the red room!" Sofia cried out. "That's the room my uncle died in. I won't go there."

Despite her protests, Sofia was dragged to the red room. As Suzette went to leave, Sofia tried to go out with her.

"Now hush," Suzette said, pushing the young child back in. "Don't make me tie you down."

"Am I a servant, that you or they should order me around?" Sofia asked.

"No, you're less than a servant for you don't earn your keep," Suzette said.

Sofia backed up. As the door closed behind Suzette, Sofia crumpled to the floor, crying and scared as memories of her uncle's death plagued her.

oOo

Several hours passed before the door opened again. Suzette came in and found Sofia asleep underneath the bed.

"Wake up Sofia," Suzette said gently. "You have a visitor."

Sofia opened her eyes and looked at the servant. Slowly, Sofia came out from under the bed.

"Go down to the drawing room," Suzette said. "Quickly, now."

Sofia did as she was told, wondering who would be coming to see her. Coming into the drawing room, she saw her aunt and cousins sitting with an older gentleman, taking tea and biscuits. Sofia remembered with a start that she hadn't eaten since long before she was taken to the red room.

"Ah, here she is now," Aunt Prisma said. "Mr. Grimtrix, this is Sofia Balthazar. She is the daughter of my late husband's sister. Sofia, this is Mr. Grimtrix. He is a parson and the director of Lowood Girl's School."

"How do you do?" Sofia said with a small curtsy.

Mr. Grimtrix stood up and looked, disapprovingly at the young girl.

"I hear you are a wicked girl," he said. "Well Sofia Balthazar, are you a wicked girl?"

"Perhaps the less said, the better," Aunt Prisma said.

Mr. Grimtrix nodded gravely.

"Come closer girl," he said.

Sofia stepped closer.

"Do you know where the wicked go after they die?" Mr. Grimtrix asked.

"Yes Sir," Sofia said. "They go to the fiery pit and burn."

"And should you like to fall into this pit full of fire and burn for all eternity?" Mr. Grimtrix asked.

"No Sir," Sofia said.

"What must you do to avoid this fate?" he asked.

"I must keep in good health and not die Sir," was the reply.

Mr. Grimtrix snorted at the reply.

"You see what I mean?" Aunt Prisma said. "She willful and headstrong. Please tell me you'll accept her into Lowood."

"But of course Madame," Mr. Grimtrix said. "We will tame her unruly spirit."

"Thank you," Aunt Prisma said. "For her holidays, I would like her to stay at the school. I should like for her to become docile and useful. And warn her teachers about her worst fault. A tendency to lie and be deceitful."

Mr. Grimtrix gasped.

"That is not acceptable," he said. "A liar? She will learn quickly to speak truth."

"I am not a liar!" Sofia cried out. "I am not deceitful! If I were, I should say that I love you and that you are the kindest person I know. I don't love you. You are the cruelest person I know except for your son, who I hate above all else!"

Aunt Prisma looked like she might faint.

"I'm glad you're sending me away," Sofia continued. "I'm glad you're no relation of mine. When I get to school I will tell them how you treated me. I will tell them that you locked me in the red room. I will never call you my aunt again.

"Suzette, come get this child and pack her things!" Aunt Prisma screeched. "She is to leave on the first coach tomorrow morning to go to school."

Suzette grabbed Sofia and pulled her away.

"Come, child."


	2. Chapter 2

**(A/N: I'm enjoying this a lot. I've written quite a few chapters ahead. It's a lot of fun deciding which character name from the show can go to what Jane Eyre character and what kingdom/village/wherever name from the show will go to what place in the story. It's a lot of fun. Hope to hear what you guys think.**

 **All this said, I own nothing. Enjoy!)**

Sofia hummed happily on the coach ride to Lowood. She was finally free from her cruel aunt and cousins. It wouldn't take long for her to find out that she was going from one unhappy place to another.

Upon arriving to Lowood, she was ushered quickly and quietly into the superintendant's office.

"Are you Sofia Balthazar?" Miss Chrysta asked.

"Yes Ma'am," Sofia said.

"Come sit with me," Miss Chrysta said. "You must be hungry after such a long journey. I have a little tea cake and some freshly brewed tea."

"Thank you," Sofia said, sitting down.

"Now, I don't know what situation you came from," Miss Chrysta said. "And I imagine it maybe wasn't great. So let me give you this advice. Study hard, do not anger Mr. Grimtrix, and never forget that there is a place for everyone in this world, including the poor and lowly."

Sofia nodded. After finishing her tea cake and tea, she yawned.

"Come Sofia," Miss Chrysta said. "I'll show you to the dormitory."

Sofia walked alongside the older woman. They came to the dormitory and Sofia's eyes widened. It was a long, narrow room with two rows of narrow beds and a long table with many wash basins and hand towels ready for use. Miss Chrysta showed Sofia to an empty bed.

"Sleep well, Sofia," Miss Chrysta said. "The day starts very early."

After Miss Chrysta left, Sofia quickly changed into her nightgown and curled up under the thin blanket. It was going to be a long, cold night.

oOo

Morning came far too quickly. A hand bell was rung in the room, early, just as Miss Chrysta had warned Sofia the night before. Chatter was heard as the girls woke up and went to the wash table. Sofia rubbed her eyes and got up. She went to dip her hands into the water in the basin but was surprised to find a layer of solid ice at the top. Before a stunned Sofia could do or say anything about the ice, another girl made a fist and slammed it into the bowl, breaking the icy top and allowing access to the freezing water underneath.

"You better hurry and wash," the girl said. "We've only a few minutes to wash and dress."

Sofia nodded numbly. The rest of the day was a blur. She vaguely remembered breakfast which was an undercooked, watery porridge that was barely edible, Mr. Grimtrix getting mad at her for accidentally dropping her board and chalk, him pronouncing her a liar in front of the whole school and making her stand on a stool until bedtime with no food. She vaguely remembered Mr. Grimtrix telling all the students to shun her because she was deemed a liar.

What Sofia did remember was an older girl sneaking her a bit of bread and cheese. It wasn't much but Sofia was thankful for the kind gesture all the same.

Finally, the time came when Sofia could come off the stool. It was just to go to bed, but almost anything would be better than standing still doing nothing.

Morning came quickly again. Like the morning before, the top of the wash water was frozen over, needing a hit from a solid fist to break it and get to the water. Sofia shivered slightly as she dipped her hands into the icy water.

After the allotted time to wash and dress was finished, one of the more stern teachers, Miss Mamanu, came into the room to inspect the girls. She stopped when she came to the girl who had given Sofia some bread and cheese the night before.

"What is this?" Miss Mamanu asked. "Your fingernails are not clean Vivian!"

Before Vivian could say anything, she coughed horribly.

"Cover your mouth!" Miss Mamanu harped. "You disobedient child."

Vivian coughed some more then stopped.

"You are a wicked girl," Miss Mamanu said. "You show me filthy fingernails and do not cover your mouth when you cough. Hold out your hands."

Vivian held out her hands, palms down, as instructed. Miss Mamanu pulled out a small bundle of twigs. Sofia watched, curious about what the purpose of the twigs was. It became apparent quickly as Miss Mamanu used the twigs to whip Vivian's outstretched hands.

"Filthy girl."

Whack.

"Willful."

Whack.

"Distracted."

Whack.

"An embarrassment to the school!"

Whack.

"Nothing will cure you of your ways."

Whack.

Sofia cringed each time the twigs came down on Vivian's hands. But Vivian did not make a sound or shed a tear at what must have been a great deal of pain. After whipping Vivian's hands a couple dozen times, Miss Mamanu put the twigs away. She inspected the rest of the girls then excused them to go down to breakfast. Sofia picked at the porridge, wondering how someone could justify feeding such ill prepared food to anyone. Unlike the previous day, it wasn't undercooked. Instead it was burnt and dry. Sofia tried to eat it, but she soon found she wasn't the only who couldn't do it.

"This won't do," Miss Chrysta said. "This won't do at all. Well girls, I believe some bread and cheese is in order this morning."

Excited murmuring went throughout the room. Sofia found out quickly that the bread and cheese was only supposed to be served at lunch. Very quickly, the small piece of dried out bread and the crudely made bit of cheese was served out to each girl. The bread and cheese was no more filling than the porridge would have been, but at least it had been edible.

As the girls finished their meager meal, Mr. Grimtrix came in. Seeing the remains of of the breakfast, he fumed.

"Miss Chrysta, what are you thinking?" he yelled. "That is not breakfast there! What happened to the porridge?"

"The porridge was too ill prepared to be edible even for a mouse," Miss Chrysta said calmly. "I wasn't about to let these poor girls suffer until lunch. Not on my watch."

"You know better, young lady!" Mr. Grimtrix fumed. "Extras like this cost money that we do not have. And the purpose here is to teach these girls humility and to repress human desire. For this, the girls will not have their lunch."

"The girls will eat lunch," Miss Chrysta said. "The extra money that this meal cost can come out of my wages and any other time I choose to feed the girls a little something extra."

"I will hold you to that," Mr. Grimtrix said. "If you ever break your end of this little deal-"

"I won't," Miss Chrysta said.

"But if you do and I find out, it won't be you who in punished for it," Mr. Grimtrix said. "Am I clear Miss Chrysta?"

"Perfectly," Miss Chrysta said.

"Good," Mr. Grimtrix all but snarled. "Now get your girls off to class before I decide they can miss lunch and dinner."

Miss Chrysta hurried the girls off. Sofia shuddered. She couldn't believe that this so called parson could be so cruel.

The morning classes passed quickly and soon a small break came. Sofia stepped outside with the rest of the girls. Sofia looked around for Vivian, finding her quickly. Vivian was sitting under an old tree reading a book.

"Hey there, you're Vivian right?" Sofia asked.

Vivian barely looked at Sofia as she nodded.

"I'm Sofia, I just arrived two nights ago," Sofia said.

Once again, Vivian hardly looked at Sofia.

"Hi," she mumbled quietly.

"What book are you reading?" Sofia asked.

Vivian looked at Sofia, slightly confused, but she still held up the cover of the book enough for Sofia to read the title.

"'Arabian Nights'" Sofia raised an eyebrow. "Is it a good story? I've never read that one."

"I guess," Vivian answered softly.

"Oh, pardon me," Sofia said. "I never did get to thank you for your little kindness yesterday. Why would you bring something to someone who everyone thinks a liar?"

"Not everyone thinks that of you," Vivian said. "And don't think we here believe what Mr. Grimtrix said. No one here likes him or believes half of what he says. He treated you the same he treats everyone here. Therefore, you'll have friends around you. If he were to treat you like a favorite, you'd have gained enemies instead."

"I hate him," Sofia huffed. "And I hate how Miss Mamanu whipped your hands. If it had been me, I would've took the twigs and broke them."

"No Sofia," Vivian said. "If you did that, you'd be expelled and you'd have to go back wherever you came from. If I were expelled, I'd have to go to the poorhouse. My parents didn't want to send me here but they could barely feed themselves, me, and my little sister. So they saved up a little bit of money to send me here."

"Did you come from very far?" Sofia asked.

"I came from the Zumarrian province," Vivian answered. "It is quite far from here."

Sofia peppered her new friend with questions. Even when the break was done, Sofia went back into class feeling better about the situation. She had a friend.

Unfortunately, it would only get worse before it got better.


	3. Chapter 3

**(A/N: To my guest reviewer, yeah, I like Vivian too. She is awesome. Too bad she...**

 **I own nothing!)**

Sofia looked at the beds that no longer had a girl sleeping in them. All around her, misery was setting in like nothing Sofia could have imagined. When winter came, so did illness. Fever and typhus were especially prevalent. Many girls had died already. If someone spent too much time around someone who gotten sick, they caught the illness. Vivian had gone to the infirmary earlier that day after being coughed on a time or two by another one of the younger girls who'd gotten sick.

Sofia was lonely without her only friend. They'd gotten to be very close. Vivian would tell Sofia stories about her family. They'd read books together and sit together on breaks. But with Vivian sick, Sofia was alone on her breaks.

It was late at night and everyone was asleep, except Sofia. Quietly, she slipped her thin house robe over her nightgown and walked down to the infirmary. She knew she'd get in trouble if she got caught but she had to go see her dear friend.

Inside the infirmary, Sofia listened to the sounds of coughing and wheezing. Quickly, she found Vivian's bed.

"Vivian?"

Vivian opened her eyes.

"Sofia, what are you doing here?"

"I had to come see you," Sofia said. "I was so worried when I saw your empty bed. I was afraid I'd never see you again."

"Oh, your feet are bare," Vivian said. "Come under the cover and warm yourself."

Sofia climbed into the bed beside her friend.

"I'm so glad Sofia," Vivian said. "I'm not really afraid to die."

"But you're not dying are you?" Sofia asked.

"Oh Sofia, we all must return to the earth's dust sometime," Vivian said. "Some go sooner than others. It's just the way of life."

"But I'm not ready to let go of you," Sofia sighed. "You've been the only friend I've ever had."

"It's okay, Sofia," Vivian said. "Someday, you will make a new friend. You're strong, determined, more so than I ever was. Someday, when you finish your education, you will find a way to leave here and find your way in the world."

"How do I get out of here?" Sofia asked. "I can't go back to my family. They don't like me. And I don't like them."

"Advertise," Vivian said. "Upper class families need governesses for their children. I thought that someday I would advertise and get out that way into the world but my time has come earlier than I thought. And I was never a good enough student to be able to teach others."

Sofia smiled softly.

"Rest now Sofia," Vivian said gingerly.

Sofia closed her eyes, her friend being the last thing she saw.

Morning came quickly and Sofia felt herself being lifted up out of the bed. Startled awake, she made a jerky motion. She looked and saw it was Miss Chrysta who was holding her. Upon seeing the young student awake, Miss Chrysta set Sofia down.

"What's going on?" Sofia asked.

"You need to return to the dormitory before Miss Mamanu wakes everyone up," Miss Chrysta said. "Come quick."

"What about Vivian?" Sofia asked.

"I'm sorry Sofia, Vivian has died," Miss Chrysta said.

"No, no, no!" Sofia cried out. "Vivian!"

oOo

The next few weeks passed in a blur. Word had gotten out about the epidemic that had plagued the school and how Mr. Grimtrix refused to feed the girls adequately or give proper supplies and such for their use, under the guise of inadequate funds and wanting to teach the girls to repress human desire. A closer look at the books proved that there was sufficient funds for better food and supplies. Mr. Grimtrix had been taking the extra money for his own selfish wants. After that discovery, a board was put in place to monitor the education and such at the school. With the board in place, the lives of all the schoolgirls improved greatly. Mr. Grimtrix was still allowed to oversee the school but he no longer was solely in charge.

As for Sofia, her last conversation with Vivian continually played in her mind. Resolving to not end up like her only friend, Sofia decided to study harder than she already was. She took as many classes in as wide a variety of subjects as she could. She studied mathematics, literature, languages, sewing, geography, music, and art. On breaks in the day and vacations for holidays, Sofia continued to study and soak up any knowledge she could. She knew how she could get out of Lowood and into the world without having to worry about returning to her so called family.

With some help from Miss Chrysta, Sofia got her hands on books about herbs, ancient mythology, and more. Sofia was confident that when the time came for her to leave Lowood, she would be ready for whatever life had in store for her.


	4. Chapter 4

**(A/N: I own nothing.)**

The years passed quickly. After seven years as a pupil, Sofia became a teacher in the school. It was her third year as a teacher but her heart wasn't in it. She was twenty years old but she wasn't ready to devote the rest of her years teaching in a place where mistreatment was constant.

Contrary to what she planned, Sofia never really gained another true friend like Vivian. Miss Chrysta was a friend to her though she was also a friend to all the girls who came to the school.

But even the unexpected would come. Miss Chrysta wasn't as young as she seemed and one cold spring night after staying up with one of the younger girls who had gotten sick, Miss Chrysta got very sick herself. Despite the doctor's hard work, Miss Chrysta succumbed to the illness and passed away.

Without Miss Chrysta around to help protect the girls from Mr. Grimtrix, Lowood became almost as scary as it had been ten years ago before the board was put in place. Mr. Grimtrix was infamous for telling stories in his 'sermons' that made the girls near deathly afraid to sleep. Miss Chrysta was good at counteracting those stories and standing up to Mr. Grimtrix on behalf of all the girls.

Sofia was going to get away from it very soon though. She had advertised and had only one response. She had been in contact with one VW, head housekeeper of a big household, some two or three hundred miles away in the Enchancia province. There was a child there, niece to the owner of the household, who was in need of a governess. Sofia was told in a letter that if she's could provide proper references, she could come work there. So Sofia had sent the references and had received a letter back stating that her arrival was very much anticipated. So Sofia made it clear she was leaving Lowood at the end of the week.

Some moments, Sofia still couldn't believe she found something so she kept the first letter from VW in her pocket at all times and reread it when she needed to.

 _If S. Balthazar can provide sastifactory references as to character, a position can be arranged. There is just one pupil, niece to the master of Hexley Hall in the province Enchancia. The wage is £40 per year._

 _Send all particulars to VW of Hexley Hall._

Sofia had two days left before her planned departure from Lowood. There was a lot of chatter about it. She had become a favorite teacher of many students.

That night during dinner, Mr. Grimtrix made a surprise visit to the school. He looked around the dining area and shook his head disapprovingly.

"Disgraceful," Mr. Grimtrix said. "Feasting like the rich nobles. These girls are supposed to be learning to be humble. Miss Mamanu, take the girls' food away and send them off to bed."

Sofia scowled. Although the food had improved from when she first started coming to the school, it wasn't enough to be considered a feast.

"No," Sofia said, standing up. "You've depraved these poor girls long enough! It is no wonder the board had to be put in. If it were up to you alone, several more girls would get sick and die each year. Your methods for making us more 'humble' have always left us more suceptible to illness. You're cruel and heartless!"

All attention turned to Sofia and Mr. Grimtrix. It was very quiet as students and teachers alike waited with bated breath to see what would happen.

"Sit back down Miss Balthazar," Mr. Grimtrix all but snarled. "The girls will learn to appreciate less and shun indulgences."

"You only teach them to distrust religious men like you," Sofia retorted. "You frighten them with stories of children dragged away by the devil himself, make them walk in circles for hours in rainstorms, give them food that is neither adequate in amount or nutrition, then expect them to perform in class with utter perfection. You're no saint. You're a wolf in sheep's clothing."

Mr. Grimtrix grabbed Sofia's arm and pulled her close to him so that he could look her closely in the eye.

"Listen here, Miss Balthazar," Mr. Grimtrix said coldly. "In two days you leave here. If I ever see your face around here again, it will not be you who suffers the consequences of your action. I do not need a second Chrysta running around here, disrupting my methods."

"I wouldn't disrupt your methods, nor would have Miss Chrysta if you weren't so severely hard on these young girls," Sofia said. "If I could take each and every one of these girls that you so horribly mistreat with me, I would. And I'd give them a better life and education than you have. I once heard a girl being called an embarrassment to the school when I first came here because she wasn't able to wash under her fingernails properly. You're the real embarrassment around here. Now let go of me you perverse crocodile."

Mr. Grimtrix was stunned at being called an embarrassment and a crocodile. But instead of letting go of the young woman, he tightened his grip on her. He looked like he was about to do or say something but then he suddenely let go of Sofia, grimacing. A quick glance revealed that he was experiencing some terrible pain in the hand that had been gripping Sofia's arm. As Mr. Grimtrix tried to ease the pain in his hand, Sofia quickly returned to her seat, not certain what had possessed her into having such an outburst.

'It is probably a good thing I leave here really soon,' Sofia thought. 'I wonder what just happened.'


	5. Chapter 5

**(A/N: Wise Owl, I laughed so hard when I saw your review for chapter three. Why? First reason, I didn't see it till after I posted chapter four. Second reason... Go back to my author's note at the beginning of chapter one and reread it.**

 **All that said, I own nothing.)**

Sofia once again found herself on a long coach ride. She was finally free of Lowood Girl's School and she had no intentions of ever going back. To pass the time, she read one of her books that Miss Chrysta had given her. It was on creatures of ancient mythology. Sofia had never understood where Miss Chrysta had gotten books of such intriguing natures but she enjoyed them, none the less. When Miss Chrysta had been sick and dying, she made it known that Sofia was to get her book collection. It had taken an extra suitcase to hold the books. Though Sofia had been certain it would take two or three to pack all the books. But they all fit in the case that Miss Chrysta left for them.

"Hexley Hall!"

Sofia looked up at the sound of the coachman calling out the destination. Quickly, she put the book back into her purse and stepped out of the coach as soon as the door was open and the steps put in place.

"Here you go Miss," the coachman said. "Good day to you."

"Thank you," Sofia said. "Good day to you."

Once Sofia's suitcases had been unloaded from the coach, the coachman flicked the reigns, setting the coach into motion once again. Taking a suitcase in each hand, Sofia walked up to the doors of the hall. Before she could even knock, the door opened to reveal an older gentleman.

"You must be the new governess," he said.

"Yes, I'm Sofia Balthazar," Sofia replied. "Are you VW?"

"Oh no, that's my daughter Violet," he said. "She's the head housekeeper here just like her mother before her. I'm Baileywick, butler. Allow me."

Baileywick took the two suitcases from Sofia.

"Thank you," Sofia said.

"You're very welcome Miss Balthazar," Baileywick said. "Come now, Gwen here will show you to my daughter so she can go over your job duties with you and I will take your bags up to your room. Gwen, leave that polishing for later. Miss Balthazar needs to go see Violet now."

"Yes Baileywick," Gwen said. "This way Miss."

Sofia followed the maid to a plainly decorated parlor. By the fireplace, an older woman sat knitting.

"Violet," Gwen said. "Miss Balthazar is here."

Violet put her knitting down. She stood up and faced the newly arrived governess.

"Welcome Miss Balthazar," Violet said. "You must be freezing and hungry and tired from the journey."

"A little," Sofia said.

"Gwen, go fetch a couple of sandwiches please," Violet said, sending the maid out the door. "Come sit by the fire with me. Warm yourself up."

Sofia sat down across from Violet. Violet sat down and picked up her knitting again.

"When do I get to meet my pupil?" Sofia asked.

"Oh probably tomorrow," Violet said. "Calista goes to bed early. She went down about an hour or two before you arrived."

"I'm sorry I missed her," Sofia said.

"It's just as well you did miss her tonight," Violet said. "If she were awake when you arrived, there would be no getting her to bed. She's a sweet girl but a little too excitable."

"What will my duties be in regards to Calista?" Sofia asked.

"Your primary duties will be in the schoolroom, teaching her and preparing her to enter school at a later point in life," Violet said. "Her uncle doesn't want to send her off for a while yet."

Gwen came into the parlor and set down a tray with a couple of sliced sandwiches and some tea. Gwen handed a cup of tea to Violet. With a small curtsey, the maid disappeared out of the parlor.

"Where are Calista's parents?" Sofia asked. "Is her uncle her guardian?"

"Oh so many questions," Violet said. "Now eat up a bit. When you're ready, I will show you up to your room."

Sofia ate quickly and quietly, wondering at the mystery of her new charge and the hall around her. After a couple minutes, Sofia had finished her meal and was ready to be shown to her room.

"Come now Miss Balthazar," Violet said.

Sofia nodded. She set her tea cup down and followed Violet out of the parlor. As they made their way up to the second floor where most of the bedrooms were, Violet prattled on about how good it was to have someone there to teach Calista. A sudden thud was heard, followed by a maniacal laugh.

"What was that?" Sofia asked.

"Probably Mrs. Nettle," Violet said. "She's a servant here, she sews and does some laundry up on the third floor. She loves her keg of ale. She can sometimes get noisy at this time of night or anytime really. I'll have a word with her in the morning about the noise. She's a good person to have helping here but that thing with nighttime noise, it does get annoying sometimes."

Sofia nodded.

"I'll show you around the hall tomorrow morning after breakfast," Violet said. "But I must warn you now, the master has said no one but himself and Mrs. Nettle are allowed up on the third floor."

"Pardon me Violet but what is the master's name?" Sofia asked. "And where is he?"

"Where indeed," Violet said. "He travels a lot. We rarely ever see him around here. But when he does show up, it's always unexpected so I have to keep the hall in a state of constant readiness. It would not do to have him come home to a mess of a place."

Sofia scowled slightly. Violet hadn't answered her first question.

"But what is his name?" Sofia asked again. "Is he a good master?"

"Oh yes," Violet said. "The master is a good man. Better than his sister ever was or their parents. Ah, here's your room. It's smaller than the other rooms but I thought you'd like it best. The other ones are so far off and so lonely."

Violet opened the door and gestured for Sofia to go in. Sofia looked around the room, awed by the sight. It was bigger than she expected. There was a bed, bigger than she'd ever had, a desk, a small vanity with a wash station, and even a small bookshelf.

"Oh my," Sofia said.

"Is something wrong Miss Balthazar?" Violet asked.

"I didn't expect so much," Sofia said. "I'm afraid I'll wake up and find out this is all just a dream."

Violet chuckled.

"This is all real, my dear," she said. "And you are very welcome here. I'll let you get some sleep. It is very late. Goodnight Miss Balthazar."

 **(A/N: Wise Owl, I love Jane Eyre! It's one of my all time favorites. But as I have stated before, this is not going to be a copy and paste version. It's going to have some fun twists.)**


	6. Chapter 6

Sofia woke up with a start. There was something or someone in her room and on her bed. She rubbed her eyes and saw a young girl on her bed.

"You're awake!" the girl exclaimed. "Violet said you arrived late last night. I don't understand why she didn't wake me so I could meet you then."

Sofia sat up. She looked at the girl and raised an eyebrow. She had black hair with white side bangs.

"You must be Calista," Sofia said.

"Yeah," Calista said. "Violet said I'd meet you at breakfast but I just couldn't wait."

"How old are you Calista?" Sofia asked.

"I'm almost nine years old," Calista said. "Violet says your name is Miss Balthazar. What of your first name?"

"Sofia."

"Sofia Balthazar," Calista sounded out. "I like that name."

"Calista!"

Violet appeared in the doorway.

"Calista, I told you not to wake Miss Balthazar," Violet said. "Out of there and back to the nursery until it is time for breakfast."

Calista slid off of Sofia's bed and sulked out of the room. Violet shook her head, a small smile on her face.

"I apologize about Calista," Violet said. "She's very easily excited. She's been very anxious to meet you ever since she found out you were coming. Well, I'd best be on my way. Keeping up with a hall this size is a big task and each day brings something different. But I'll be back here in time to help you find your way back to my parlor. Then after breakfast, I'll show you around."

"Thank you," Sofia said.

After Violet left the room, Sofia decided to get dressed. She quickly slipped on a plain black gown. After dressing, she decided to pass the time till breakfast by unpacking her stuff since she hadn't done it the night before. As Sofia put the last item in place, a knock sounded on the door.

"Miss Balthazar, are you ready to come down to breakfast?" Violet's voice could be heard.

Sofia quickly pushed her suitcases under the bed and then opened the door. Violet was standing there, smiling softly. The two walked back down to the parlor, Violet aimlessly chatting away the whole way down.

Breakfast was pleasant. Calista was talking endlessly about how excited she was to finally have someone teach her everything she needed to know to be a well accomplished lady. Sofia gave a small smile, wondering how long she'd be a governess to this young child before she was sent away to school. She seemed to recall Violet mentioning the night before that the master of the hall wasn't going to send his niece away for a while.

"Miss Balthazar, what sort of things will you teach me?" Calista asked. "Will you teach me to sing, play pianoforte, will you teach me to speak another language?"

As Calista was asking about what she'd learn, she was speaking with her mouth full.

"I think the first thing I'm teaching you is table manners," Sofia answered coolly.

Calista quieted. She finished her breakfast without launching anymore questions about her schooling or anything else for that matter. Once breakfast was finished, Violet sent Calista off to the nursery.

"Well, let's get you the tour of the hall," Violet said. "It would not do for you to not be familiar with the home where you work."

Sofia followed Violet out of the parlor. As they walked through the lower two levels, Violet prattled on about the hall and what it was like growing up there. They came to a room, relatively close to Sofia's room.

"This is the master's room," Violet said, opening up the door.

Sofia stepped in behind Violet with some trepidation. She looked around and noticed a portrait of an older man with a gray mustache and beard wearing a red vest.

"Is that the master of the hall?" Sofia asked, pointing to the portrait.

"Oh no, that's his father," Violet said. "Though I have no idea why he keeps that portrait up. They never got along. I don't know the details, but I know it wasn't good."

Violet picked up a small portrait off of the dresser.

"This is the master when he was a young boy," Violet said.

Sofia looked at the picture and raised an eyebrow. The same black hair with white bangs that graced Calista's head also could be seen on the head of the boy in the picture.

"How did the master come to be the guardian of Calista?" Sofia asked.

"Her parents both passed away," Violet said. "Calista has no memories of her parents."

"How terrible," Sofia said.

"Indeed," Violet said. "The master was living abroad at the time but when he got news of his sister's death and his niece being an orphan, he came quickly. He never did get along with his sister after they left their teenage years behind, something about some misunderstanding. But he adored his niece. His sister had been acting as mistress of the hall, since he was very far abroad and their parents were aging. But it was always him who the hall would go to."

Sofia thought to herself for a moment.

"Violet, you've never once told me the master's name," she said. "Are you going to tell me?"

Violet looked stunned.

"Haven't I told you?" Violet asked, to which Sofia shook her head. "Oh sorry my dear. Mother always did say I was ditzy doing anything that didn't involve housekeeping and keeping house guests happy. Maybe she was right. It wouldn't be the first time she was right about something important. Mother does indeed know best. Oh those flowers are a mess!"

Violet grabbed a vase off the bedside table that was holding a bundle of dead flowers.

"I always have to remind Gwen to change these flowers often," Violet said. "Heaven forbid the master come home to an ill prepared bedroom."

"His name Violet," Sofia said exasperated. "What is the master's name?"

No answer was given. Violet had gone rushing off to get fresh flowers for the bedroom. Sofia shook her head and stepped out of the room. She walked down the hall to get to the schoolroom that was set up for her lessons with Calista. What surprised Sofia was the fact that Calista was there.

"Hello Miss Balthazar," Calista said. "Is your tour with Violet done? Are we going to start lessons now? Do I really have to learn table manners?"

Sofia nodded. "I think the tour is done," she said. "Calista, maybe you can help me. Violet keeps skipping over your uncle's name. I've asked her many times what it is but before she can tell me, she gets distracted."

"Violet's like that," Calista said. "Easily put off by menial things. I don't remember my uncle's actual name, I've used a nickname for him as long as I can remember. I've always called him Uncle Ceddy."

"It's better than nothing, I suppose," Sofia said. "Thank you Calista. Let's start lessons and if you're good today, we'll go for a walk in the gardens."

Calista nodded excitedly. "Of course Miss Balthazar," she said, taking her seat. "I'll be extra good."

"Excellent," Sofia said.

'Maybe this won't be so bad,' Sofia thought. 'Ceddy... I wonder what name that goes to.'


	7. Chapter 7

**(A/N: So yeah... bringing in Calista and her telling Sofia the nickname she uses for her uncle pretty much confirms who the master of the hall is. Thought about teasing you guys and saying it was someone completely random but I decided to be nice. Updates may be a little slow. I've not been writing as much or as fast I had been and school just started this week so I'm going to be extra busy.**

 **All that said, enjoy this chapter. I own nothing.)**

Sofia sat on a window seat in the schoolroom mending a ripped seam on her bonnet. Calista had once again gone into her room to wake her up and had started playing with Sofia's bonnet. So now, while Calista did her schoolwork, Sofia was working on fixing it. Sofia had given her student extra work for the day and cut out one of the small breaks where she'd have allowed Calista to go play for a bit. Sofia didn't like doing that but she had to get the message through to Calista that going into other people's rooms and playing with their things was not acceptable.

As Sofia finished stitching her bonnet back together, Calista set down her quil.

"Miss Balthazar, may I go play now, please?" Calista asked.

"Have you finished the two pages I gave you of mathematics?" Sofia asked in return.

Calista sighed and picked up her quil again. She wrote answers for another couple minutes then set her quil back down.

"I'm finished Miss Balthazar," Calista said. "Now may I go play? I promise I'll be good for the rest of the day."

"Let's see how your work is first," Sofia said, setting done her sewing.

Sofia looked over the two pages of problems.

"Much better than last week," Sofia said. "You missed two equations. Much better than last week's five missed equations. Go on and play for ten minutes. You've earned it."

Calista jumped up out of her seat and started to run out of the schoolroom.

"Calista, walk please!" Sofia called after her pupil, though Calista was already out of hearing range.

Sofia shook her head. Calista's manners had improved greatly over the last two months but they still needed a lot of work. Deciding to enjoy the small break herself, Sofia took her fixed bonnet back to her room and then grabbed one of her books to read. This time, it was a book on rare and exotic herbs. It was interesting to read about some of the herbs so rare that people thought them to be myths.

Sofia didn't get very far in her reading before a crying Calista returned to the schoolroom, wet and covered in mud.

"Calista why are you so messy?" Sofia asked.

"I went running outside and I slipped in some mud," Calista tearfully explained.

"This is why I've told you not to run," Sofia said. "Go find your nursemaid and ask her to help you get cleaned up. As soon as you're clean, come straight back to the schoolroom."

Calista nodded and took off to find her nursemaid, Rosie. Sofia picked up her book and continued reading. In about an hour, Calista returned. Sofia was about to resume lessons but then Violet entered to let them know it was time for dinner. Calista smiled gleefully all the way down to the parlor. Seeing the smile on Calista's face, Sofia wondered if her young pupil had purposely gotten dirty so that she could avoid the rest of the afternoon's lessons.

"Miss Balthazar, do you think you could post a letter for me?" Violet asked. "I know how much you like to walk down to the village after dinner so I hoped you might take the letter with you."

"Of course," Sofia said.

"Thank you Miss Balthazar," Violet said. "Best you eat dinner quickly so you don't walk too long in the dark."

"The moon will light my way back here," Sofia said.

Some thirty or forty minutes later, Sofia had her bonnet and shawl on and the letter in hand. The walk down to the village, Dunwitty, was a pleasant walk. One way, the walk was a little over thirty minutes. Sofia figured she would be back to Hexley Hall about thirty minutes after seven, just barely missing Calista's seven o'clock bedtime.

Sofia arrived to the post office and had a quick conversation about the weather with the postmaster. He was a pleasant older man who had managed the post for many years. He enjoyed having a short conversation with anyone who came with a letter to send off.

The conversation went longer than normal and Sofia had started walking back to the hall some fifteen minutes after seven. The sun was setting, bringing in a chill but Sofia didn't notice it much. Instead she started walking a little bit slower so she could take in the scene of the roadway at dusk. As she passed a considerable bend in the roadway, Sofia paused when she realized her shoe had come untied. She knelt to tie it again.

As she stood up to continue walking, Sofia heard something. She listened for a moment and realized it was the sound of an approaching horse as well a dog barking. Judging by how loud it was, she knew it was very close. Suddenly, the horse she heard came round the bend and reared as Sofia scrambled to get out of the way.

The next couple minutes could only be described as mayhem as the horse and its rider fell and the dog ran around the scene barking and growling. As Sofia started to head towards the rider to help, she noticed some ice that she was certain was not there before.

"Merlin's mushrooms!" Sofia heard the rider say as the horse got off him.

"Are you hurt Sir?" Sofia asked.

"Stand back, witch," the rider said. "You've done enough damage. Quiet Wormwood!"

The barking dog became quiet and docile at the command, choosing to come sniff at its downed master. Sofia looked him, noticing the hat and the riding coat he was wearing, both which were black but almost seemed to have a purple hue to them.

"Are you hurt Sir?" Sofia repeated. "I can fetch help from where I live. It's just down to road a bit."

"I'll be fine," the rider said. "Nothing's broken. Run along now."

"I couldn't think of leaving you until you're able to mount your horse," Sofia said.

"You should be home right now," the stranger said as he started standing up. "What are doing out so late? Where do you come from?"

"I'm the governess at Hexley Hall," Sofia said. "I was out to post a letter."

"Hexley Hall eh?" the rider said, looking Sofia over. "Be sure then to tell your master what I think of his employees knocking travelers off their horses."

"I've yet to meet the master," Sofia admittted.

"Hmph," the rider said, before taking a tentative step, resulting an exclamation of pain. "Posieden's pumpkins! I believe I do need some help, Miss. Would you get hold of my horse and bring him to me?"

"Of course Sir," Sofia said.

She went over to the horse and grabbed the reigns but the horse whinnied and bucked, still spooked from the incident. The rider chuckled.

"Stubborn beast," he said. "Come here Miss. You'll have to help me walk over to him."

Sofia went over to the traveler and allowed him to put his arm around her shoulders. Within moments, Sofia had the stranger over to his horse and he climbed up once he had taken a moment to calm the animal.

"Thank you for your help," the rider said, "Now hurry on home before you startle more innocent travelers. Come Wormwood."

The rider set his horse into motion, the dog following close behind. Sofia wondered at the strange occurrence for a few seconds before she continued on her walk back to the hall.

It was completely dark by the time Sofia arrived back to Hexley Hall and much later than she meant to be. It was near eight o'clock when she walked through the door. As Sofia took her bonnet and shawl off, she heard a familiar bark. Startled, she dropped her items and stared shamelessly at Wormwood as he came running up to her. Sofia noticed Gwen hurrying by with a tray with some tea on it.

"Gwen, whose dog is this?" Sofia asked.

"He came with the master," Gwen said.

"With whom?" Sofia asked.

"The master, Mister Sebara," Gwen said. "He's just returned from his travels."

Sofia was certain she had paled when she found out just who she had encountered mere minutes ago on the road. Violet came into the entryway as Gwen continued on her way with the tea.

"There you are Miss Balthazar," Violet said. "You wouldn't believe what's happened! Mr. Sebara returned a few moments ago. He was thrown from his horse and now has a sprained ankle. I've had to send for the surgeon. He is barely able to walk."

"That is quite enough Violet," another voice said.

Violet became quiet and Sofia noticed the traveler she encountered standing up with some assistance from Baileywick. Without the hat in the way, Sofia could see on her master, the unusual two toned hair that her pupil had.

"Sir, you shouldn't be up so much," Baileywick said.

"Nonsense Baileywick," was the reply. "I have you to help me out."

"You're Mr. Sebara?" Sofia asked softly.

"An excellent deduction, Miss Balthazar," Mr. Sebara said.

"The surgeon will be here in the morning Mr. Sebara," Violet said. "He was on his way out the door when Rosie got there to ask for him. He said he wishes he could come tonight."

"Very well," Mr. Sebara replied, his gaze not leaving Sofia. "Baileywick, help me upstairs to my room."

"Yes Sir," Baileywick said.

When the two were halfway up the staircase, Mr. Sebara paused.

"Miss Balthazar!"

"Yes Sir?" Sofia replied.

"I'd like for you to have tea with me tomorrow evening," Mr. Sebara said. "Six o'clock sharp in the drawing room. Come along with Calista and Violet. Goodnight."

"Yes Sir," Sofia replied. "Goodnight."

Sofia grabbed her bonnet and shawl from where she had dropped them before making her way to her room.

'I hope he doesn't dismiss me for this night's accident,' she thought.


	8. Chapter 8

**(A/N: I'm back. Sorry for the long wait. May be a while before the next update cause school has been super busy. Rest assured, I haven't forgot about the story.**

 **All that said, I own nothing.)**

Sofia had to work with an extra excited pupil the next morning. As soon as Calista found out her uncle was back, she refused to sit still or focus on her work.

"Miss Balthazar when can I go see my Uncle Ceddy?" Calista asked for the umpteenth time.

"Tonight at tea," Sofia replied in a monotone voice. "After dinner. Now, eyes on your work."

"Oh but I must get ready," Calista said, standing up. "I've got to make sure I look my best. I haven't seen him in a while."

Before Calista could bolt out of the schoolroom, Sofia snagged her by the wrist.

"Calista, it is ten in the morning," Sofia said. "It doesn't take eight hours to put on a nice gown and primp your hair. You will have plenty enough time to get ready after dinner. Now sit down and focus on your studies."

"But-" Calista started.

"No," Sofia replied. "Focus on your studies. If you do well, we'll add five minutes onto the break after lunch."

Calista sighed and sat back down. With her pupil more focused, Sofia started working on some schoolwork for the next couple days. She actually kept at least a week's worth of lessons ready but she would adjust the lessons as needed based on Calista's progress. The last couple days, Calista hadn't been doing as well as she had been. It was taking more and more to keep her focused. Sofia figured it was because winter had been setting in and they couldn't take walks out in the garden anymore. Calista loved her garden walks.

"Miss Balthazar, history is boring," Calista said. "Why can't we study something fun like music and art all the time?"

"You need a well rounded education in order to be an accomplished young lady someday," Sofia said. "And history is part of that education. And it's my job to give you that education."

"Being an accomplished lady doesn't sound that fun anymore," Calista said.

"Perhaps, perhaps not," Sofia replied. "Either way, your education is very important."

"Dull is a better word," Calista said.

"Calista, that is quite enough," Sofia said. "Back to your work. Lunch isn't very far off and I imagine you want that extra five minutes on your break."

Calista sighed and went back to work. Sofia rubbed her forehead, wondering what it was going to take to get her young pupil focused again.

oOo

"Miss Balthazar, you might want to get dressed in your nicer black gown for tea," Violet said.

"Wait, why?" Sofia asked. "Is it necessary to do that?"

"Oh, I always dress for the evening when he extends an invite to tea," Violet said. "Now hurry along. It's getting close to the time to be in the drawing room."

Sofia hurried up to her room to do as instructed. She figured there would be no point in arguing this. She felt the need to make a good impression, especially since she had such a rough meeting with Mr. Sebara the night before.

In a few minutes, Sofia was ready. She grabbed Calista from the nursery where Rosie had helped her get ready and met Violet outside the drawing room a couple minutes before six o'clock. Violet gave Sofia a reassuring smile before knocking on the door. When the command to enter was heard, they went in.

"Uncle Ceddy!" Calista exclaimed, running over to her uncle and throwing her arms around him. "Rosie said you were thrown from your horse last night."

Mr. Sebara hugged Calista back then lifted her up onto his lap.

"Yes, indeed," Mr. Sebara said. "Now, have you been a good girl or do I need to send you off to school extra early?"

Calista became very quiet.

"Hmm," Mr. Sebara said, wagging his finger at his young niece. "I'm certain I told you to behave for the new governess once one was found for you."

"I'm mostly a good girl," Calista said. "I still run around a lot, despite Miss Balthazar telling me not to and yesterday I slipped in some mud right before dinner. I think I'm going to slow down. It was one of my favorite dresses that I was wearing."

Mr. Sebara chuckled. "Let me guess, that red dress I brought you early this past spring?" he asked.

"Yes," Calista said. "But Gwen was able to get it clean again."

"Good, good," Mr. Sebara said. "I have a little surprise for you after you finish your tea."

"Really?" Calista said. "What is it?"

"If I told you, it wouldn't be a surprise anymore, now would it?"

Calista pouted.

"Now off to your seat," Mr. Sebara said. "I'd like to talk with Miss Balthazar. Violet, is the tea ready?"

"Yes Mr. Sebara," Violet said, handing a tea cup to Sofia. "Pass Mr. Sebara his tea will you, Miss Balthazar? Calista might perhaps spill it."

Sofia took the cup and handed it over to Mr. Sebara before getting her own cup of tea from Violet. The next few minutes passed in relative silence, though when plenty enough time for the tea to be finished had passed, the silence went away.

"Uncle Ceddy, may I have my surprise now?" Calista asked.

"It's over there on the pianoforte," Mr. Sebara said, pointing to the instrument in question. "Open it up with Violet while I talk with your governess."

Calista beamed and ran over to retrieve her gift.

"Miss Balthazar, come sit over here," Mr. Sebara said, motioning to a seat near him.

Sofia nodded and went to the seat as instructed.

"You've been here two months, am I right?" Mr. Sebara said.

"Yes Sir," Sofia said.

"And how did you find your way here to Hexley Hall?" Mr. Sebara asked.

"I advertised and Violet responded," Sofia said.

"So no family to make any recommendations on your behalf?"

"I don't have any family," Sofia replied.

"An orphan eh?" Mr. Sebara inquired. "No wonder you seem to get along so well with my niece, you have something in common. Did you ever know your parents?"

"I have very vague memories of them," Sofia said.

"And where did you receive your education?" Mr. Sebara asked.

"Lowood Girl's School," Sofia said with a slight grimace.

"I take it you did not enjoy your time there," Mr. Sebara said. "I heard about some huge scandal involving Mr. Grimtrix and the distribution of school funds what was it, nine years ago?"

"Ten years ago," Sofia corrected. "He had been taking money away from the school funds for himself. Ten years ago, he got caught after about half the students died from illness and people began wondering why as he put it 'there were insufficient funds for food, school supplies, and medical supplies'. He was allowed to stay there but there was a board put in to monitor him and school functions closely. I suspect he still was taking money for himself but things did improve afterwards."

"You speak of the incident as if you were there yourself," Mr. Sebara mused.

"I was," Sofia said. "I had barely arrived a month or so before all of it started going down."

"You must be tenacious of life to survived there for so long," Mr. Sebara said. "How old were you when you first arrived there?"

"I was ten years old," Sofia said.

Mr. Sebara chuckled to himself.

"So you're twenty years old now," Mr. Sebara said. "Hmph, never liked mathematics when I was a kid but it is quite useful now. I shouldn't have been able to figure your age out without it."

A clock chimed in the background and Mr. Sebara looked at it with a bemused expression.

"Seven o'clock, Calista's bedtime," Mr. Sebara said. "Off with you now. Goodnight."

Before Sofia could get her young pupil on her way to the nursery, Calista ran back over to her uncle, a doll in her arms, to give him one last hug.

"Thank you for the doll Uncle Ceddy," she said. "I really like it."

Mr. Sebara smiled and placed a small kiss on Calista's forehead.

"Off to bed now," he said. "And you do as Miss Balthazar says tomorrow, understand?"

"Yes Uncle Ceddy," Calista said. "Can I see you tomorrow for tea?"

"Maybe, if you behave like the good little girl I know you are capable of being," Mr. Sebara said. "Goodnight now Calista."

"Goodnight Uncle Ceddy," Calista said, before going with Sofia.


	9. Chapter 9

**(A/N: You guys are awesome. Thanks a lot for the support with me being in school. It's been one of those years.**

 **All that said, I still own nothing.)**

The next few weeks passed in a blur. Since Mr. Sebara came, he pulled Calista away from her studies in the schoolroom for an hour each day. Sofia had asked her young pupil what she did with her uncle but was told it was a secret. So Sofia dropped the subject and continued to focus on teaching the young girl. Calista focused more on her studies than she ever had been. Sofia realized it was probably an attempt on Calista's part to make sure her uncle was proud of her.

'What happens when Mr. Sebara leaves?' Sofia wondered, remembering that Violet had said he never stayed very long.

"Miss Balthazar, look what I did!"

Calista held up the painting she had been working on. It definitely looked like the work of a nine year old but Sofia could tell her young pupil had had fun on her piece of art.

"It looks very nice," Sofia said. "Very colorful."

"I'm going to go show Uncle Ceddy," Calista said, jumping up.

Sofia reacted fast. Mr. Sebara had a couple of guests and had specifically said no disruptions until business was concluded.

"Calista, no!" Sofia said. "Your uncle is busy now. You've got to stay here."

Sofia went running after her young pupil. She wasn't quite fast enough to keep Calista from leaving the schoolroom, so Sofia went chasing after her through the hallways.

"Calista, get back here," Sofia called. "Calista, now is not the time! Calista!"

Calista kept running though. Sofia's calls did nothing.

'I'm going to get in so much trouble for this if those guests are still here,' Sofia thought.

Sofia followed Calista as she burst into the drawing room.

"Uncle Ceddy look what I painted!" Calista all but squealed. "Do you like it?"

Sofia got to the drawing room door and paled when she saw that the guests were still there. They were standing with Mr. Sebara who gave Sofia a displeased glance before whispering something to Calista. Calista's excitement deflated and she went walking back to Sofia.

"He said later and told me to go back with you," Calista said once she was out of the drawing room.

"I told you it wasn't a good time," Sofia said. "You've got to listen when you are told no."

"Fine," Calista sighed.

"Now, I believe it is almost time to go down to Violet's parlor for dinner," Sofia said. "Let's quickly go up to the schoolroom and put your painting away then we'll go eat."

"Okay," Calista said, still noticeably upset.

Sometime later as Sofia and Calista were finishing their dinner with Violet, Rosie came into the parlor.

"Miss Balthazar, you're wanted in the drawing room," Rosie whispered into Sofia's ear. "Mr. Sebara wants to talk with you right away."

Sofia took a deep breath.

"Thank you Rosie."

Sofia stood up and started walking to the drawing room.

'This is it,' Sofia thought. 'Mr. Sebara is going to tell me to pack my bags and leave.'

When she got to the room in question, Sofia didn't even have a chance to knock on the door before she heard the command to come in. She walked in to see Mr. Sebara standing by the fireplace staring into the flames.

"I take it my niece gave you a run for your books earlier?" Mr. Sebara said.

"I'm not sure I understand what you mean Sir," Sofia said.

Mr. Sebara chuckled and turned around.

"Oh it's an old expression my father often used when my sister and I were kids and gave our tutors a lot of trouble," Mr. Sebara said. "And no more calling me 'Sir'. That's what my father was called and I still want to look for him when someone refers to me by that title."

"Of course, Mr. Sebara," Sofia said. "Are you not mad that I couldn't keep Calista under control?"

"No," Mr. Sebara said. "She's still a child who's learning the rules. I'd be very impressed if you were able to keep her in line all the time. She has behaved better than she ever has since you came along. I'm very pleased at how well you've dealt with a child who's used to being allowed to run free with few boundaries."

"Thank you Mr. Sebara," Sofia said.

Mr. Sebara walked over to his chair and sat down. He motioned to a seat by it.

"Sit down a moment Miss Balthazar," Mr. Sebara said.

Sofia sat down, feeling her seat was just a bit too close to her employer's spot.

"I spoke with Calista a little bit this morning and she was telling me that you plan to start some music lessons with her soon," Mr. Sebara said. "Do you play the pianoforte or sing or something of that sort?"

"Only a little bit," Sofia said. "I wasn't a very good student at the pianoforte and my singing skills are even more dismal but I got good enough at both to teach the basics."

"I'm surprised," Mr. Sebara said. "Calista keeps telling me you're brilliant at everything you teach her or plan to teach her at future dates. Go over to that pianoforte there and show me."

Sofia went over to the pianoforte and sat at it, thinking to herself of what she could play. A memory came to mind. A song her mother had taught her. Sofia pressed her fingers to the keys. She didn't get very far in the piece before she could remember no more and faltered.

"You're right," Mr. Sebara said. "You do have some skill that lacks. What else did you study at Lowood?"

"Mathematics, literature, history, art," Sofia started to say as she moved back to her seat.

"History eh?" Mr. Sebara interuppted. "Study any ancient mythology with that?"

"Only on my own time," Sofia said. "Mr. Grimtrix didn't care much for the old stories of witchcraft and sorcery."

"His loss," Mr. Sebara said. "Ancient mythology and study of the witchcraft and sorcery of old was a personal favorite of mine. How did you come across anything on ancient mythology?"

"The superintendent had a collection of books that spanned a wide variety of topics," Sofia said. "Ancient mythology, rare and exotic herbs, and the mystics. She gave them to me to read over vacations and ultimately left them to me when she passed away."

Mr. Sebara chuckled and pulled a small book out from behind him. Sofia's eyes widened as she looked over the familiar book.

"Calista brought this to me early this morning," Mr. Sebara said. "Told me it was yours. I wondered how an orphan came across a book about the magic of mythical creatures."

Mr. Sebara handed the book over to Sofia.

"Miss Chrysta, she was the superintendent back at Lowood, she told me the books had been in her family for some time," Sofia said. "She never married or had children so she left them to me."

"Hmph," Mr. Sebara raised an eyebrow. "Why you? Why would she give them to you to read and keep after her passing? Something about you must have warranted such trust. Books of these nature are very rare. So called parsons and other religious leaders caused such knowledge to become nearly extinct. So why would this superintendent give these books to you?"

"I don't know," Sofia said. "She never gave me a reason. She only said that in time, I would understand why."

Sofia was starting to fidget in her seat. Confrontation of this sort was not familiar to her and she didn't like it. Had it been anyone else in the hall who she was having this conversation with, she would've left a long time ago. But it was her employer who was quizzing her about her past and Sofia had enough training in etiquette to know not to leave until she was dismissed. So she opted to scoot her chair back a few inches.

"Scared Miss Balthazar?" Mr. Sebara asked, noting Sofia's fidgeting.

"I'm not scared, Mr. Sebara," Sofia said. "I simply do not care for confrontations of any sort."

"No one ever does Miss Balthazar," Mr. Sebara said. "But it's a part of life that can't be avoided."

Sofia shook her head slightly then stood up.

"Where do you think you're going, Miss Balthazar?" Mr. Sebara said.

"It's almost seven o'clock," Sofia said. "Time to get Calista off to bed."

"Rosie is taking care of that tonight," Mr. Sebara said. "But go ahead and leave for the night."

"Thank you Mr. Sebara," Sofia said.

Sofia quickly retreated out of the drawing room before her employer changed his mind.

'What a strange man,' she thought.


	10. Chapter 10

"Like this?" Calista asked.

Calista and Sofia were sitting at the pianoforte in the schoolroom. Calista started to play a five note scale. Sofia listened half heartedly. It had only been a few days since the strange conversation with Mr. Sebara in the drawing room but it still had Sofia very distracted, trying to figure out why he made such a big deal about the books she had.

'Maybe Violet knows something about this strange behavior,' Sofia mused to herself.

"Miss Balthazar, did I play it right?" Calista asked.

Sofia shook herself out of her musings.

"Oh I'm sorry Calista," Sofia said. "I wasn't listening."

Calista looked at her governess and raised an eyebrow.

"Your face is red," Calista said.

"It's very warm," Sofia said. "I think we'll get our shawls and go for a short walk outside then resume lessons."

Calista jumped up and grabbed her shawl. Sofia smiled to herself.

"Can we perhaps bring our drawing pads and draw a bit while outside?" Calista asked.

"I don't see any reason not to," Sofia said. "Wrap your shawl around you then grab your pad."

Moments later, the two were on a bench outside that had a view of the yard and its sprawling landscape. Sofia heard a couple of voices and glanced out into the yard and saw Mr. Sebara talking with one of his tenants.

"Uncle Ceddy is going to leave again soon," Calista said. "He never stays this long. I miss him when he leaves."

"Perhaps," Sofia said. "It is his choice to stay or go."

Calista sulked then smiled brightly as if she had an idea.

"Miss Balthazar, you're good at drawing," Calista said. "Can you draw me a portrait of him so I don't have to miss him so much?"

Sofia made a small grimace but turned to a blank page in her sketchbook. She took a quick glance at her employer then set her pencil to paper. Sofia could almost feel Calista's excitement as she sketched a side view of her employer, taking occasional glances up at him.

As Sofia was about finished with the sketch, she glanced up to find that Mr. Sebara had disappeared from the yard.

"Your gaze is very direct, Miss Balthazar."

Sofia jumped from her spot on the bench at the sound of Mr. Sebara's voice behind her. She stared wide eyed at him, trying to figure out how he got there so fast and without her noticing.

"Do you think me handsome?" Mr. Sebara continued on.

"No Sir," Sofia said, forgetting to not call him sir.

Mr. Sebara laughed.

"My, my, how very cool," Mr. Sebara said. "You're quiet and grave until someone says something to you that requires a response then you rap out a reply that's as blunt as it is brutal. What do you mean by it?"

"I meant no disrespect Mr. Sebara," Sofia said. "I spoke too plainly."

"You did no such thing," Mr. Sebara said. "So tell me, what faults do you find with me?"

"None Mr. Sebara," Sofia said. "Beauty has no meaning to me."

"Hmph, spoken like a true naive schoolgirl governess," Mr. Sebara said. "So what have you been drawing there?"

Sofia felt her cheeks heat a bit as she held her sketchbook out to her employer. Mr. Sebara took the sketchbook and looked at its newest addition.

"Well, well, well, you've got me," Mr. Sebara said, pulling the page out of the sketchbook, crumpling it.

Calista snatched the page from her uncle.

"No," she said. "That's mine."

Sofia gave a quick half smile at Calista as she showed mild annoyance at her uncle.

"Come with me Miss Balthazar," Mr. Sebara said.

Mr. Sebara walked a few steps then paused.

"Calista, go back to the schoolroom," Sofia said softly. "I'll be there soon."

Calista got up and went inside like she was instructed. Sofia turned and walked with Mr. Sebara. He didn't say anything as they walked along.

"If you don't mind my asking, Mr. Sebara, what happened to Calista's parents?" Sofia asked.

"Ever the direct person, Miss Balthazar," Mr. Sebara said. "Calista's father was in a coach accident and my sister, her mother, got very ill the following winter."

"That's very unfortunate," Sofia said.

They continued walking along, quietly.

"Indeed it was," Mr. Sebara said after a moment of silence. "I was abroad when it happened. Returning to Hexley Hall after so much time away was difficult. It was what needed to be done though. As much as I've come to dislike the place, I think I can learn to like it again."

"Hexley Hall is a very fine place," Sofia said. "I do not see how anyone could dislike it."

"Merlin's mushrooms, you are naive," Mr. Sebara said. "Just because a place is nice, it doesn't automatically mean it is good. You've had no experience of such finery, I imagine. So your claim that no one would dislike a fine place is not valid."

Sofia thought back to living with her aunt. Her aunt's home was very fine, as befitting her late uncle's status of a magistrate. But it hadn't been a pleasant experience so the house was less than great in her mind.

'No, a pleasant exterior doesn't automatically mean a pleasant place,' Sofia thought.

"Mr. Sebara!"

Sofia recognized the voice of the older butler. Mr. Sebara turned to face Baileywick.

"A Mr. York is here to see you," Baileywick said. "I've shown him to the drawing room."

"Thank you Baileywick," Mr. Sebara said. "Let Mr. York know I will be there in a moment."

"Right away Mr. Sebara," Baileywick said before walking away.

Mr. Sebara watched Baileywick fade away.

"You've done good work with my niece," Mr. Sebara said. "Thank you Miss Balthazar."

With that, Mr. Sebara strode away, not giving Sofia much of a chance to say anything in response.


	11. Chapter 11

**(A/N: Wise Owl, I smiled when I read your review. Mr. York is no one. He has no significance to the story. He's just some random visitor for Cedric to see.**

 **And on to the story! I own nothing!)**

Sofia tossed and turned in her bed. Despite a busy day, sleep eluded her.

A laugh sounded. Sofia shuddered slightly. Despite Violet saying she would talk to Mrs. Nettle about the disturbances, they never seemed to let up very much. In fact, they seemed to get worse, especially during the middle of the night.

The laugh sounded again, much more maniacal than before. The sound of a door opening and closing nearby drew Sofia's attention. She sat up and went to her door. Sofia stepped out into the hallway and turned towards the sound the laughter had come from. She didn't see anyone.

Sofia was about to return to her room when she noticed a candle sitting on the floor in front of another bedroom door. She quietly stepped over to it and grabbed it. As Sofia extinguished the candle, she noticed a lot of smoke coming from under the door. Taking no heed to whose room it was, she threw the door open to see an occupied bed caught on fire.

"Mr. Sebara!"

Sofia ran over to the bed and tried to wake up her employer by shaking his shoulder and calling his name but Mr. Sebara didn't stir. A fire stricken piece of cloth broke off from the bed curtain and landed on Sofia's hand causing her to gasp in pain and shock. She decided to wait on waking him. The smoke had already gotten through to him, making it harder to wake him up.

Sofia spotted the ever present vase of flowers. She pulled the flowers out, ignoring the pain as leaves and thorns brushed her burned hand, and threw the contents onto the fire, some of the water splashing Mr. Sebara's face, startling him awake.

"Merlin's mushrooms," Mr. Sebara sputtered.

Mr. Sebara noticed the flames engulfing his bed and jumped out quickly. He grabbed a curtain that hadn't been lit on fire and used it to snuff out the remaining flames.

Mr. Sebara stared at the blackened bed before turning to face Sofia.

"Are you alright, Sofia?" he asked.

"Yes, Mr. Sebara," Sofia answered. "But you were nearly burnt in your own bed."

"What happened?"

"I heard a laugh in the coridoor and followed it here," Sofia said.

"You followed a laugh here? Did you see anything or anyone?"

"I didn't see anything except a lit candle right in front of your door," Sofia said.

"I imagine you recognize the laugh though," Mr. Sebara said.

"I did," Sofia said. "I think it was Mrs. Nettle. She laughs in that way."

"Posieden's pumpkins," Mr. Sebara muttered. "I've told her cut back on the drinking. Accidents like these do happen more easily after drinking. I'll have to have a word with her about that."

Mr. Sebara stood up and walked to where Sofia was. He held his hand out to her to help her up. Sofia took the offered hand and as she was pulled into a standing position, Mr. Sebara's fingers brushed her burn, earning a small gasp of pain from her. Mr. Sebara looked at the hand closely when he heard the gasp.

"Merlin's mushrooms," Mr. Sebara said. "Is this from the fire, Sofia?"

"Yes Mr. Sebara," Sofia replied. "And there were some thorny roses in the vase of water. It'll heal quickly, I'm sure."

"Hmph," Mr. Sebara muttered.

Mr. Sebara let go of Sofia's hand and went over to a chest at the foot of his bed. He opened it up and pulled out a small vial. He pressed it gently into Sofia's uninjured hand.

"Use this twice a day until your hand heals," Mr. Sebara said. "It's an old remedy my mother would use for small wounds like this."

"Thank you Mr. Sebara," Sofia said.

"I'm the one who be thanking you," Mr. Sebara said. "Fire is a painful way to go."

Mr. Sebara was about to say more but then the same maniacal laugh sounded.

"Neptune's nettles, is she still not settling down?" Mr. Sebara muttered. "Sit down a moment, Sofia, and don't make a sound. I've got to go get her settled down before in her drunken madness, she does something else."

Sofia nodded numbly before sitting down on the couch. Mr. Sebara strode over to the door and paused before opening it.

"Wrap yourself in my cloak if you get cold and remember, no sounds," he said.

Sofia watched as her employer opened the door and stepped out. After a couple moments, she grabbed the cloak and wrapped it around her shoulders.

The time slowly passed and Sofia started to fall asleep. The sound of the door opened and closed again, waking the young governess. Mr. Sebara stepped in the room, visibly annoyed.

"She hopefully won't be doing anything else tonight," he said.

"Why do you keep her around if she does such things?" Sofia asked.

"It doesn't matter," Mr. Sebara replied. "When she's not inebriated, she serves the household well."

"But-" Sofia started.

"Sofia, you're the only one who knows what has happened here tonight," Mr. Sebara interrupted. "Say nothing about what has happened here. What truly happened here needs to stay between you and me. I will account for what has happened here."

"Of course Mr. Sebara," Sofia said.

Mr. Sebara sat down close to Sofia. Slowly, as if unsure or nervous, he took Sofia's uninjured hand. Sofia's breath caught in her throat.

"You saved my life," Mr. Sebara said. "I owe you a great debt. Somehow, simply saying thank you doesn't convey my gratitude enough."

"There is no debt, Mr. Sebara," Sofia said. "I'm just glad I happened to be awake. Besides, I don't think anyone can repay a saved life."

"Perhaps, perhaps not," Mr. Sebara shrugged. "Either way, I owe you, now and forever more."

A grandfather clock chimed in the room, indicating it was three o'clock in the morning.

"And now, I really do need to send you off to your room," Mr. Sebara said. "Servants will be up in an hour or two."

Sofia nodded. As she stood up, so did Mr. Sebara. Sofia took the cloak off of her shoulders and handed it over to her employer.

"Goodnight Mr. Sebara."

"Goodnight Sofia."

Sofia quickly went to her room. As she walked over to her bed, she smiled softly and kept gazing at her hand.


	12. Chapter 12

Sofia woke earlier than she normally did that morning. Sitting up, she thought of the events of the previous night. After a moment, she looked at her hand. It had been tingling since she applied the ointment Mr. Sebara gave to her but at least it didn't hurt like it had the night before.

After a moment, Sofia heard some commotion nearby so she decided to quickly dress and see what was going on. Stepping out of her room, she saw a servant leave Mr. Sebara's room with a burnt curtain. Sofia decided to walk over to her employer's room. Upon getting there, she saw a few of the housekeeping staff, including Mrs. Nettle, at work changing the burnt linens and cleaning soot away. Mrs. Nettle, an older lady with ginger hair that was slowly turning gray, looked up.

"Good morning Miss Balthazar," Mrs. Nettle said.

"Good morning," Sofia replied. "What happened here?"

"The master fell asleep reading and a curtain caught on fire," Mrs. Nettle said. "Fortunately, he woke up and got the fire put out before there was any real damage."

"That's very unfortunate that that happened," Sofia said. "Did no one hear anything while it happened?"

"Violet said she heard nothing, but older folks tend to sleep heavily," Mrs. Nettle said. "Your room is close and I imagine you're a light sleeper since you're young. Perhaps you heard something?"

"I did," Sofia said. "I thought it was Wormwood, but dogs do not laugh. And I'm certain I heard laughter."

"I don't think the master would laugh, especially if he were in danger," Mrs. Nettle said before throwing a folded curtain to Gwen, with instructions to hang it up. "You must have been dreaming."

"I was not dreaming," Sofia insisted. "I know what I heard. It was laughter."

"If you insist," Mrs. Nettle said. "But let me give you this piece of advice. Lock your door when you go to bed. Although, the neighborhood here is quiet, this is a grand house with some valuables. Never know when a robber will come by."

Sofia turned and left the room. As she walked down the hallway, she ran into Violet who was carrying some fresh bed linens.

"Oh Miss Balthazar, I still can't believe it," Violet said. "It's a wonder we weren't burnt in our beds. You have heard about what happened, right?"

"I have," Sofia said with a nod. "Is Mr. Sebara alright?"

"Oh yes," Violet said. "He was up with the sun and gone well before breakfast."

Sofia lost her footing for a split second.

"He's left?"

"To go to the Henrik's," Violet said. "I understand there's quite a party there right now."

"He'll be back tonight though, right?" Sofia asked.

"Probably not," Violet said. "When rich folks like them decide to get together, it lasts quite a while. They might spend a few weeks at one place then go to another for a while. Mr. Sebara may not be seen around here for another year. Not that I didn't expect him to leave eventually. He's not stayed this long in a long time, if ever."

"Of course," Sofia said. "How is Calista taking it?"

"About the same as usual," Violet said. "She'll be moping for a while. Take no notice though. I imagine, she's quite used to this and will bounce back quickly."

Sofia nodded then went on her way.

 **(A/N: So I have exciting news. I recently got an idea for another Sofia the First story while watching a fanmade video on youtube and reading a comment. In just a week, I nearly have the whole story written. The title I've chosen is "I Will Find You". I'm going to put a little sneak peek for it on my page really soon and the first chapter will go up fairly soon afterwards. I will still be working on A Plain Enchancian Love Story but this new one will most likely be updated much quicker as it is nearly completely written. I look forward to seeing what you all think! :) )**


	13. Chapter 13

Sofia glanced at Calista as they ate lunch with Violet a couple weeks later. Calista was still moping from her uncle's sudden departure and getting her to stay focused during lessons was proving harder and harder for Sofia.

"Two weeks," Violet said. "I imagine the master has gone off on his travels again."

A soft knock sounded on the door and Gwen stepped in with a letter in her hand.

"Violet, there's a letter for you," Gwen said, holding out the letter.

Violet took the letter and looked it over. She stood up, wide eyed, and hand over her mouth.

"My, my," she said. "Gwen, go down to the village inn and borrow some extra servants. Double the regular wage if necessary. We're going to be quite busy over the next several days."

"Violet?" Sofia asked.

"Mr. Sebara is coming back in three days and he's bringing guests with him," Violet explained. "He's never brought guests here."

"Really?" Sofia asked. "Not once?"

"Well not in a long time," Violet said. "And not while I was the head housekeeper. Oh, I have so much to do to get ready. Food to be prepared, guest rooms to clean, drawing room to dust, oh I best get started right away."

"Uncle Ceddy is coming home?" Calista asked.

"Yes, Calista," Sofia replied. "And he's going to bring some guests. Violet's going to very busy getting the hall ready so I need you to be on your best behavior. And that means no running in the mud or in the hall."

Calista nodded before taking another bite of her lunch.

oOo

The next few days passed quickly. There was a flurry of activity as the whole household prepared for the soon to arrive guests. Calista was very excited about the opportunity to meet new people. Despite her excitement, she had behaved relatively well, especially after an incident involving her running around inside and getting a bag of flour dropped on her. After that incident, and finding out she wasn't receiving any sympathy from anyone, Calista kept out of the way.

Sofia and Calista were sitting in Violet's parlor quickly eating their lunch when Violet stepped in.

"They'll be arriving any minute," Violet said.

"Can I go see Uncle Ceddy when he gets here?" Calista asked.

"You need to stay with Miss Balthazar," Violet said. "Because of all the guests who will be here, you have to wait until he sends for you Calista. And since he is going to have guests you can't call him Uncle Ceddy. You will have to call him Uncle Cedric."

Calista made a face.

"I think the guests can just go away and never come here," Calista said.

Sofia covered her mouth to try and keep from laughing at her pupil's disdain.

"It'll be hard, for sure," Sofia said. "But for the most part it will be no different than any other time he's here. You'll continue having lessons in the schoolroom, meals here in Violet's parlor, and if your uncle doesn't send for you, you stay out of sight."

Calista sighed then suddenly looked towards the open parlor window. A moment of silence and Sofia and Violet heard it too- horses approaching. Violet hurried over to the window and looked out. Mr. Sebara was on his horse with Wormwood following close behind. Another horse rider was close to him. Sofia studied the rider.

"They're here," the housekeeper said. "There on the horse riding alongside Mr. Sebara is Miss Hildegard, daughter of Lord Henrik. Coming out of that first carriage is Lord Henrik and his wife, Lady Henrik and their other daughter Astrid. It looks like Colonel Garrick's carriage is next, with his two sons Axel and Hugo. Oh there's the carriage of Lord and Lady Graham. No doubt they've brought their daughter, Cleo with them. I'd best get down there to greet them."

Violet rushed out of the room. Calista looked out the window at her uncle as he held his hand out to help Miss Hildegard down from her horse. Calista stuck her tongue out at the visitor.

"Calista!" Sofia chided.

"I don't like Hildegard," Calista said. "I heard Gwen telling Rosie about how she is only after a fortune and Uncle Ceddy is very rich. He gets thirty thousand a year."

"Calista, you shouldn't say such things," Sofia said. "And remember, you can't call your uncle by that pet name while the guests are here. You have to call him Uncle Cedric."

"If Uncle Ceddy marries Hildegard, I'll be hexing her till the day she dies," Calista said bitterly.

Sofia took a firm hold of Calista's wrist.

"Alright, back to etiquette lessons for you," Sofia said.

Calista pouted, but walked back to the schoolroom with her irked governess.


	14. Chapter 14

**(A/N: Hildegard is not going to be the villian. Although, the character from Jane Eyre that she represents is a bit of a snob. But so is Hildegard, hence why I chose her for this role.)**

Sofia watched Calista closely. Since the lunchtime fiasco, Sofia had worried that her pupil would run out and cause mischief. Calista sighed as she finished one final equation on her page of mathematics.

"Miss Balthazar, I'm hungry," Calista said. "Is it almost time for dinner?"

Sofia looked at the clock. To her surprise, it was just barely past their normal dinner time.

"Why don't you clear the books off the table while I go get some food," Sofia said. "Violet must be very busy with all the guests if she didn't make sure we didn't go late in lessons."

"Okay," Calista said.

Sofia stepped out of the schoolroom and walked down some back hallways to get to the kitchen. It took a couple minutes to get the food as other servants were running around the kitchen. But once Sofia had it, she stepped out of the kitchen, into the back hallway, right into a figure she didn't recognize and subsequently spilling food over the two of them.

"Oh I'm so sorry!" Sofia exclaimed.

"Hmph," the newcomer scoffed. "Incompetent girl. This gown is brand new and worth more than fifty of you. Your master will be hearing about this."

Sofia glanced at the young raven haired and olive skinned lady before looking down at the ground.

"I'm sorry," Sofia repeated. "It was an accident."

"You better start packing your bags," she all but screeched. "Once your master hears about this, he will be sending you away."

With that, the young lady stormed off. Sofia shook her head and collected the food again before quickly and quietly getting back to the schoolroom.

"You took a long time," Calista said.

"It is very busy outside of the schoolroom," Sofia replied. "All of the guests are getting settled and the kitchen is bustling with activity."

"Can I go see Uncle Ceddy now?" Calista asked before picking some food off the platter.

"Calista, I hope when your uncle calls for you, you remember not to call him 'Ceddy'," Sofia said. "Violet and I have told you more than once that you need to call him by Uncle Cedric while the guests are here."

Calista sighed and ate her dinner quietly.

oOo

Sofia watched as Calista boredly doodled on her sketchpad. Unexpectedly the door to the schoolroom opened and Violet slipped in quickly.

"Violet, how are things going?" Sofia asked.

"Is Uncle Ceddy finally asking for me?" Calista asked.

"Calista," Sofia warned.

"Not yet," Violet answered. "But I did just come from the drawing room. Who would have thought that the younger Miss Henrik would venture off into the servant passageway and go right in front of the kitchen door? She complained to Mister Sebara about someone running into her with a tray of food. I wish you could've seen her expression when Mister Sebara asked her why she was in the servant hallways in the first place. The younger Miss Henrik was not amused."

Sofia looked at the housekeeper with an intrigued expression.

"The younger Miss Henrik, you said that was Hildegard right?" Sofia asked.

"Yes, indeed," Violet said. "Anyways, after Miss Hilegard stormed off, I happened to mention to Mister Sebara that Calista was anxious to see him and that maybe she would enjoy the festivites. And he said that tomorrow, Calista could come down to the drawing room after dinner."

"Yes!" Calista exclaimed, jumping up.

"And he said that you, Miss Balthazar, would accompany her," Violet continued.

"What?" Sofia asked. "Oh no, he couldn't have meant that. I'm not suited for that sort of thing. He certainly was only being polite."

"I asked him if he was certain," Violet said. "Mister Sebara said that if you did not come, he'd fetch you himself."

Sofia silently mused about everything that was happening.


	15. Chapter 15

Calista hopped up and down excitedly. Sofia smiled quckly and took a hold of her young charge's hand.

"Settle down please, Calista," Sofia reminded softly. "And remember-"

"Call my uncle by his real name," Calista deadpanned. "I know. You've been reminding me all day to call him Uncle Cedric."

"And don't forget it," Sofia said as the two entered into the deserted drawing room.

At Violet's advice, the two were in the drawing room before the guests were finished with dinner. While they waited, Sofia softly reviewed basic ettiquette with Calista, much to the young girl's chargin.

"I still don't like Miss Hildegaard," Calista said.

"Calista, don't you dare say that!" Sofia chided. "She will be coming in here very soon and if you aren't very nice to her, she may tell your uncle and get you into trouble. Now be a good girl and put on your best smile. They're coming."

"Fine," Calista said.

Moments later, the door to the drawing room opened. The young ladies filed in first, followed by the gentlemen. After they had all come in, Sofia relinquished her hold on Calista. Now free, Calista went to the young ladies, introduced herself and took to asking them about their fancy gowns and head dresses. From her window seat, Sofia smiled. So far, Calista was doing very well.

Content to know that Calista was behaving, Sofia started reading over her notes for the next day's lessons. She hadn't gotten far when strains of nearby conversation caught her attention.

"I can't abide the thought of having a governess in house. You then have to not only pay them but also feed them. And then next thing you know, they're making eyes at the master of the house or carrying on with the tutor."

"Really? I hadn't noticed."

Sofia tried to place who the first speaker was. It was one of the matrons, she knew that much. The second speaker, she knew his voice all too well.

"I used to tease my governess all the time. But she would bear it all. Nothing I would do could upset her."

 _Hildegard!_

Sofia tried to keep her face impassive but hearing the snobbish young lady speak so coldly was bringing on feelings the young governess had trained hard to suppress. She felt the need to get out of the room, lest she lost it.

"I propose a little performance, a memoir to our governess problems."

Hildegard went to the pianoforte and began a tune. With everyone distracted, Sofia quietly stepped out of the room. She would find Rosie to have her keep an eye on Calista and make sure she made it to bed on time.

Sofia stopped just outside the door as her shoelace had come untied. She knelt to tie the knot again. As she stood up from tying her laces, the door to the drawing room opened. Sofia turned to see Mister Sebara there.

"Where are you headed?"

"I didn't think I was needed in there anymore. I was going to have Rosie come get Calista when it is her bedtime."

"That's not what I asked, Sofia."

"I'm headed to my room," Sofia said, voice bordering on sharp. "I'm just tired."

Mister Sebara raised an eyebrow. "And a bit depressed, I dare say. Tell me, why is that?"

Sofia shook her head. "I'm not depressed."

Even as she said those words, Sofia could feel a tear about ready to fall. She knew she had to make a quick getaway to her room.

"Your eyes say otherwise."

Sofia shook her head again and turned to continue on her way to her room.

"Please excuse me Mister Sebara."

"Fine. You're excused tonight but so long as guests are here, I do want you to appear in the drawing room every evening."

Sofia barely acknowledged the request as she hurried away to her room.


End file.
